If ever a film could be said to woo it’s The Shape of Water, Guillermo del Toro’s enchanting, daring, beautiful and breathtaking tale of aquatic love. Delightfully scored and gorgeously designed, this is a package of perfect cinematic harmony and a masterpiece in which no emotion is left unscathed.

Tis award season again. A time for those in the film industry to acknowledge the work of dedicated members of cinema, allowing many of them the chance to one day look back at their nominations or award wins as their greatest achievements. But I ask myself, is that what award season is about? In recent years I have found award season to be less about acknowledging good films, or opening doors to what eventually become greatly overlooked films, and more about the giant popularity contest that is Hollywood.

There are many reasons to explain why global release dates for films can vary so much from country to country. Some films need dubbing, others need to ferry their cast around for promotion, whilst a handful see the distributor test the waters before spending on global advertising. In the case of a select few, however, the delays are tactical strikes at nailing the box office and the awards season.